ABOUT THE PROJECT
By The Cut of Their Cloth (BTCOTC) is a collaborative project exploring Brent’s rich multiracial and mixed race history. OPEN CALLS - to the Public and Creatives - will be conducted to generate imagery and collect narratives that will encourage the local community to delve into family photos and work with relatives to explore and celebrate their own (and Brent’s) wider multicultural and mixed race past, with a particular focus on what the fashion in these photos can tell us about the sitters and the society they lived in.
Alongside our three PRACTICAL WORKSHOPS - visual research, photography and illustration/image making - we hope that the images and family histories uncovered by the project, as well as the outputs created, will contribute to existing archival collections, such as that held by The Mixed Museum, for future generations to study and enjoy.
A digital exhibition, showcasing the journey and outputs of the project, will be hosted by The Mixed Museum in March 2022.
December 2021: Open Call for images (from public and creatives).
January 2021: Open Days (15th-16th) hosted by the BTCOTC team at The Library at Willesden Green. Share and discuss your images with us!
February 2021: Creative practical workshops (14th, 16th & 18th). Using FREE materials, work with Warren at The Library at Willesden Green to produce artistic outputs inspired by your own or Brent's multiracial history.
March 2021: Digital exhibition showcasing the project's journey and outputs launches at The Mixed Museum.
To learn more, see the relevant sections as they are added below or contact us at: BTCOTCproject@yahoo.com.
PLEASE NOTE THAT DUE TO UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES, THE MOOD BOARD WORKSHOP WILL NOW TAKE PLACE ON THURSDAY 17TH FEB 2022.
Bring a photograph or personal possession from your family archive or explore historical Brent figures to create your own mood board!
Are you fascinated by your own or Brent’s mixed-race or multicultural family history? Are you a Brent resident or have links to the area? Have you ever wanted to explore history through creative practice? Then our MOOD BOARD workshop is the one for you!
In this practical workshop at The Library at Willesden Green, you will bring a photograph or personal possession from your family archive or be inspired by the many colourful stories we have unearthed during research for the BTCOTC project to use as a starting point to create a mood board about the life and times of your family members or historical figures.
With help from local Brent-based artist Warren Reilly, you will pull references from the images to help gain insights into your own or Brent’s mixed race and multicultural history. By the end of the workshop, you will have a finished mood board which you can continue to add to or refine in your own time.
All art materials, fabrics and research resources will be provided, but these may be limited so we also encourage you to bring your own! Printing costs are also free of charge during this workshop, which is kindly sponsored by The Library at Willesden Green.
The BTCOTC Mood Board workshop takes place on Thursday 17th February from 17.00-19.00. FREE but booking required. Recommended age: 15+ (Children under 15 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian throughout the workshop).
Book here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/btcotc-free-mood-board-workshop-tickets-260955895107
Create an illustration inspired by your own mixed race/multicultural family or take inspiration from historic families in Brent!
Are you fascinated by your own or Brent’s mixed-race or multicultural family history? Are you a Brent resident or have links to the area? Are you interested in fashion illustration or observational drawing? Then our ILLUSTRATION workshop is the one for you!
In this practical workshop, you will bring a photograph or personal possession from your family archive - or be inspired by the many colourful stories we have unearthed during research for the BTCOTC project – to use as a starting point point to create your own illustration and/or collage about the life and times of your family members or historical figures.
With help from local artist Warren Reilly, you will use the image of your family member/historical figure, or the object that represents their life and identity, as a visual reference to draw from. We will discuss various options in the workshop that you could use to create your artwork, including continuous line drawing and mark making in conjunction with layering using photocopies and secondary resources from magazines and newspapers. By the end of the workshop, you will have either an illustration, collage or mixed media artwork that is designed to celebrate Brent’s mixed race and multicultural history.
The BTCOTC Illustration workshop takes place on Wednesday 16th February from 17.00-19.00. FREE but booking required.
Recommended age: 15+ (Children under 15 MUST be accompanied by a parent or guardian throughout the workshop).
To book: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/btcotc-free-illustration-workshop-tickets-260959485847
Are you fascinated by your own or Brent’s mixed-race or multicultural family history? Are you a Brent resident or have links to the area? Are you passionate about fashion, styling and image-making? Then our photography workshop is the one for you!
In this practical workshop, you will bring a photograph or personal possession from your family archive or be inspired by the many colourful stories we have unearthed during research for the BTCOTC project to use as a starting point to create your own styled and composed photoshoot about the life and times of your family members or the historical figures of Brent.
With help from local artist Warren Reilly, you will pull references from the images/objects to help gain insights into your own or Brent’s mixed race and multicultural history and how you can use this to take inspiration within your very own photoshoot. By the end of the workshop, you will have a series of photographs on your digital device (mobile phone, DSLR etc) as well as a disposable film camera (provided by us) which you take away with you after the workshop and use to further develop your ideas (disposable film camera costs also covered by us). Your photos may also end up as part of the BTCOTC digital exhibition!
The BTCOTC PHOTOGRAPHY workshop takes place on Friday 18th February from 11.30-16.00 (with 45 min break). FREE but booking required.
Recommended age: 15+ (Children under 15 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian throughout the workshop).
To book: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/btcotc-free-photography-workshop-tickets-265034484277
If you want to take part in any of the workshops, you must bring a photograph (copy or original) that represents your own or Brent's mixed-race/multicultural history.
For example:
Pleaes note that we cannot be held responsible for any damage of or theft to your property.
EXTRA NOTES for the PHOTOGRAPHY workshop.
Disposable cameras will be provided alongside a selection of art materials & fabrics. However, as these may be limited, please feel free to bring your own items to supplement your shoot. For example:
You do not have to be from a mixed-race family to take part in our workshops!
If you would like to produce a mood board based on one of the figures from mixed race and multicultural families we have been researching during By The Cut of Their Cloth then you can participate in the project using them as inspiration. You might wish to look at well-known Brent figures, such as Zadie Smith, or those from lesser-known Brent stories, such as Ram Singh Nehra and his wife Myfanwy, or Princess Omdutel Aurau Begum buried at Paddington Cemetery. We can provide a list of choices and resources if this is the case – email us before the workshop (BTCOTCproject@yahoo.com) for more information.
Refreshments
Due to the regulations of the Library at Willesden Green, there are public no water fountains available within the building so please ensure you have bought all that you need to sustain you during the workshops. There are many shops nearby where you can buy something to drink. You are more than welcome to drink during your workshop, but food is not permitted. We kindly ask you not to leave for reason of refreshment unless absolutely necessary or during the offical break time in order not to disturb the running of the workshops.
Please note: the workshops will take place in the performance space at The Library.
Outputs
We may wish to include your finished outputs in our exhibition, or feature you in our forthcoming exhibition. With your permission, we may also wish to photograph or film your participation.
Any member of the public who wishes to participate in our workshop will need to complete our consent form so we can make sure that the information you have shared with the BTCOTC team can safely be included in the digital exhibition at The Mixed Museum or in our archive collections. You may do this before, during or after the workshop takes place using the form which we will send out to you prior to the event.
Covid safety regulations
Covid safety regulations will be enacted in accordance to the policy of The Library at Willesden Green. Please see the information on the Eventbrite workshop pages or contact The Library for more details.
We are happy to answer any questions about any aspect of the workshops or the project in general, either in person or by email. Contact us at BTCOTCproject@yahoo.com.
Our 'Brent Family Archives', 'Brent Creatives' and 'Family Researchers' Open Calls went live in January 2022! You can see the advertising for the Open Calls below.
OPEN CALL 1: Family Archives
Brent residents! Share your family photos to help us learn more about Brent’s mixed race and multicultural history!
The BTCOTC project is looking to preserve and celebrate the mixed-race and multicultural histories of Brent residents. Can your family photos help us learn more about Brent’s diverse racial past?
We are using fashion as a lens to help us understand and display overlooked interracial family stories of Brent. So, as well as photos of family members we would love to see your images of jewellery, garments, ornaments, or other family belongings that represent and celebrate the coming together of different races and cultures in Brent families!
A selection of submitted photos will be displayed as part of the BTCOTC digital exhibition hosted by The Mixed Museum in March 2022. For more details or to submit photos, contact us: BTCOTCproject@yahoo.com
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION OF IMAGES: 27 FEBRUARY 2022.
Poster image courtesy of Glamorgan Archives
Graphic Design by Jenny BM: https://jennybmartist.
OPEN CALL 2: Brent Creatives
Share your creative work on Brent’s mixed race and multiracial history as part of our By The Cut of Their Cloth (BTCOTC) exhibition!
The BTCOTC project is also looking to showcase the work of artists, photographers, filmmakers, fashion/textile designers and other creatives based in or from the London Borough of Brent.
BTCOTC is working with Brent residents to turn their interracial family photographs and outputs from three creative workshops into a digital exhibition hosted by The Mixed Museum in March 2022. We would also love to feature your existing or new work inspired by Brent’s mixed race and multicultural history as part of the exhibition.
If you would like to submit a piece for display, please contact us at BTCOTCproject@yahoo.com
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION OF ARTWORK: 27 FEBRUARY 2022.
Poster image courtesy of Warren Reilly
Graphic Design by Jenny BM: https://jennybmartist.
OPEN CALL 3: Volunteers
Family history researchers! We would love to hear from anyone interested in volunteering their time to help us uncover Brent's mixed race family histories.
We have a few fascinating leads from newspapers and archives that we’re keen to learn more about in time for our exhibition in March. If you have experience of and access to online genealogical sites and would be able to spare a few hours, we would be very grateful if you could track down any additional information on some of the accounts we’ve uncovered. These include:
We also have the mystery of the 'Black man’ of Neasden Stud Farm in the 1890s. Labelled as such in a photo at Brent Archives, is he actually a man of colour at all or is this rather an error made at some point during the archival process? But if so, why? We would love to know!
Our Open Days were held on 15th and 16th January 2022. You can see the advertising for the Open Days below.
Inspired by television programmers such as Antiques Roadshow and Fake or Fortune, our online Open Days on the 15th and 16th January 2022 invite Brent residents to delve into their attics, cupboards and family photo albums and tell us about any images and personal possessions that illustrate their mixed race and multicultural family histories.
We are also keen to hear from Brent-based creatives who have made or are engaging with work that resonates with our project theme.
Originally scheduled to be held in-person at Willesden Library, due to Covid restrictions the event will now take place via Zoom. Book your private conversation with the BTCOTC team here!
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/by-the-cut-of-their-cloth-open-day-tickets-231641404677
WHAT HAPPENS AT THE OPEN DAYS?
Due to Covid restrictions, we are now inviting residents to share their images, objects and memories with us via Zoom rather than in person at Willesden Library.
We politely ask you to book one of our 45 minute slots via Eventbrite to join our Zoom room so we can conduct our conversations with each visitor on a 1 to 1 basis. In the private Zoom room, members of the BTCOTC team will ask you questions about your items, including where your image or object is from.
During the Zoom session, we will mark the place/origin of your images and objects on our three maps of Brent, the UK and the world. We will be carrying out this task on your behalf during your interview, noting down your thoughts, feelings and memories which we will collect at the end of the event and pin onto our maps to locate its origins. The completed maps and tags will be photographed and scanned for potential inclusion in our digital exhibition or the collections of The Mixed Museum and Brent Museums and Archives.
You may also be asked if you would like to arrange an in-person meeting (once restrictions have eased) with Creative Director Warren Reilly so that he can photograph and record your objects for use in our digital exhibition or the collections of The Mixed Museum and Brent Museums and Archives.
If you are willing, we would love to record your account for potential use in our exhibition but there is no obligation to agree!
WHAT ARE WE INTERESTED IN?
BRENT RESIDENTS: We are interested in any of the following that tell a story of your family’s or Brent’s mixed race or multicultural history. For example:
BRENT CREATIVES: In addition to showing us your work, it might be useful to think about the following before our conversation with you:
REFRESHMENTS
We had intended to provide refreshments at the in-person event but unfortunately due to Covid requirements this is now not possible. However, feel free to make yourself a hot drink during the meeting should this make you feel more at ease (as long as there is no risk of you damaging the item you are showing us)!
CONSENT
Any member of the public who wishes to contribute their story or image to the Open Day will need to complete our open day consent form so we can make sure that the information you have shared with the BTCOTC team can safely be included in the digital exhibition at The Mixed Museum or in our archive collections. You may do this before, during or after the Open Day takes place using the form which we will send out to you prior to the event.
We are happy to answer any questions about how your material and personal details will be used, either in person or by email via BTCOTCproject@yahoo.com.
WHAT WILL BE THE OUTCOMES OF THE BTCOTC OPEN DAYS?
Some of the narratives and images shared with the BTCOTC project team at the Open Days will be curated into our digital exhibition hosted by The Mixed Museum. The material collected at the Open Days may also be used in our February half term art and design workshops as talking points or creative inspiration. Our film maker will also use material from the Open Days to create a series of short videos about both the project and Brent’s wider mixed race and multicultural history.
Material may also be offered to Brent Museum and Archives for inclusion in their collections. Additionally, some of the images donated to the project may be used in an installation to celebrate the launch of the exhibition at Alperton Studios.
All uses of material offered will be for non-profit and educational use only.
We do hope that you will join us for this free and fun Zoom community event!
Any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us: BTCOTCproject@yahoo.com.
Originally scheduled to be held in-person at Willesden Library, due to Covid restrictions the event will now take place via Zoom. Book your private conversation with the BTCOTC team here!
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/by-the-cut-of-their-cloth-open-day-tickets-231641404677
Information on our 'By The Cut of Their Cloth' Digital Exhibition coming soon!
In the meantime, you can follow us on Instagram:
#BTCOTC
@foh.brent
@themixedmuseum
Or contact us at: BTCOTCproject@yahoo.com
